Giving Shelter To Rohingyas Is A Threat To National Security, Says RSS Chief On Dussehra

"We have been facing the problem of illegal Bangladeshi migrants and now Rohingyas have infiltrated into our country."

Rohingya refugee sisters, who just arrived under the cover of darkness by wooden boats from Myanmar, hug each other as they try to find their parents at Shah Porir Dwip, in Teknaf, near Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh, September 29, 2017. Picture taken September 29, 2017. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today asked the central government to keep national security in mind while taking a decision on Rohingyas who are seeking shelter in the country.

"We have been facing the problem of illegal Bangladeshi migrants and now Rohingyas have infiltrated into our country," Bhagwat said while addressing the RSS' annual Dussehra event here.

Giving shelter to Rohingyas will not only put pressure on our jobs, but also pose a threat to national security, he said.

"Any decision regarding Rohingyas should be taken by keeping in mind the threat to national security," he said referring to the people who have fled from violence-hit Rakhine state in Myanmar.

On the Kashmir issue, Bhagwat said the problems of the people, who were displaced from the Kashmir Valley in 1990s, are yet to be addressed.

"Necessary constitutional amendments will have to be made and old provisions will have to be changed in that state," he said at the event, where BJP patriarch L K Advani and Union minister Nitin Gadkari were among those present.

"Only when the constitutional amendments are done, can the residents of Jammu and Kashmir be completely assimilated with the rest of India," Bhagwat said, apparently hinting at Article 370 which gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

The RSS chief referred to the issue of cow vigilantism, saying "it is reprehensible that some some people have been killed allegedly by gaurakshaks".

At the same time, many people have been killed by cow smugglers, he said.

Bhagwat said the issue of cow protection is beyond religion and "many Muslims have sacrificed their life for protection of the cow just as people of Bajrang Dal have".

On the economic situation, the RSS chief said that the interests of small, medium industries and self-employed businesses should be protected as they make the "biggest contribution" to the economy.

Bhagwat offered condolences to the victims of the stampede in Mumbai yesterday.

"We all empathise with the families of our brethren who have lost their lives and those who have got injured in yesterday's incident at Mumbai," he said.